Baldwin on employee mandate delay

U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) wants to know more about the White House delay on a key Obamacare provision. The Obama administration this week announced a major change to the implementation of its landmark health care law, delaying by a year the employee mandate requirement that all businesses with more than 50 workers provide health-care coverage.

“The announcement came as a surprise to many,” said the Madison Democrat. “But I think the most important aspect to look at overall is, we need to make this work. If it is the assessment that a little more time is needed, I want to hear their (administration) rationale for these decisions,” she said Wednesday on the University of Wisconsin campus.

Some observers believe that delaying the employer mandate could throw off projections regarding how people get health insurance in the next year, and as well as projections of Obamacare’s cost. “I want people in Wisconsin who don’t currently have insurance to be able to afford comprehensive insurance,” said Baldwin. “That’s the design, and that’s what we want to be able to accomplish in the end.”

Governor Scott Walker also weighed in Wednesday on the White House announcement. He claimed the decision to delay the mandate was a good one, in the light of concerns he’s heard from employers who are unsure on how to proceed.